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Guillermo Rigondeaux: The Personification of Boxing

Rigo is the most skillful fighter I've ever seen in my life time, just watching him is poetry in motion. It's about time he is admired for his truly extraordinary accomplishments.

Boxing is not about "Mexican Style" as GGG and other one dimensional sluggers would have you believe or a contest where two fighters brainlessly exchange punches while they go toe to toe, it's a science and art based on distance, timing, rhythm and most of all simplicity. The Brain is the most powerful weapon in a fighters armoury.

After winning an unprecedented 2 Olympic Gold medals and ending his 475 fight amateur career with just 12 losses, he turned Pro in 2009 but not after his defection from Cuba and banishment from their Cuban boxing team courtesy of Fidel Castro. To pursue his professional ambition, he had no choice to leave his wife and 7 year old son. Soon after, he would claim the lineal super bantaweight title in just his 12th fight; but in a pro career which has lasted almost a decade, he remained a commodity that falls under the radar despite his excellent skill.

Unfortunately for him, it was a case of being too good and too dangerous for opposing promoters, someone who'd put an end to all the cash cows in their stable. Often they made excuses by calling him boring and this false narrative benefited the careers of inferior fighters such as Leo Santa Cruz and Carl Frampton. On the other hand sightings of Rigo in the squared circle were like appearances from the anti-christ in the last hour! for this reason the skill, dedication and discipline of Rigo has rarely been allowed to truly bloom, and it hasn't even been a case of other elite fighters avoiding him, quiet frankly a minority have been willing to do battle with him and it's indicated by 10 fights during a 7 year stretch.

George Foreman once said, Boxing is like Jazz; the better it is the less people appreciate it. It couldn't be more poignant in Rigo's case, but he's a piece of literature which everyone will recognise as being a work of genius but instead of studying its greatness they much rather watch Love Island. But for me, watching Rigo is like being in the thick of the action rather then watching a movie in the theatre; your constantly immersed in every subtle movement, no motion or energy is wasted, in Thermodynamics it is said that a machine can never be 100% efficient, if Rigo were a machine he would be the technically advanced marvel that is 100% efficient.

Very few elite fighters would accept an undercard position on a Warren Boxnation promotion in England, but Rigo had no issue accepting the fight for peanuts against an over matched opponent in Jazza Dickens who was game on the night, although his jaw was broken within 3 rounds . It's hard to see a Lomachenko on such an under-card, his career has followed the same path as Rigo but he has enjoyed the mainstream exposure and bigger pay days spearheaded by Bob Arum's Top Rank company while Rigo's career has been that off a gypsy, constantly travelling and making leeway's for his opponents in order to get paid.

But the reality of the matter is that Rigo is the most skillful fighter of his era and a master of boxing artistry, it's about time he is overly glorified because he deserves it.

Lomachenko v Rigondeaux is a purists fantasy dream, for me this is the fight of our decade, yes Rigo is 37, Loma should have fought him much earlier and there's a significant handicap on Rigo's side when it comes to weight and physical attributes but it is hard to put in words the magnitude of the skill and ability combined which will lock horns on December the 9th. And you never count an Olympian out, Rigo has the defence to neutralise Loma's aggression and I back him to cause a monumental upset.

You know i was reading an article the other day on medium titled" The most misunderstood boxer". One of the key points i take from that article and another espn article called "the lonely success story of rigo" is that Rigo has been underutilized by promoters who did not know the right way to promote him. A good promoter can provide a boxer with opportunities that are better suited to him financially and careerwise.

The other thing i have noticed about rigo & I am making a huge assumption on that as i did not follow his career at all (not his faut, i rarely follow lighter divisions in boxing which is the main reason i joined this thread so i could be updated) is that he doesn't hype the fights and doesn't engage in trash talking. He always seems robotic to me which has not endeared him to the public along with his defensive style and built false narratives about him hurting his image in the process.

I am not saying that he should change his nature but faking a little bit can go a long way in this business & there is no harm in it as your personality helps you become a better draw and increases chances of getting fights as public interest is there which can force the promoter's hand one way or the other.

That is how rest of the world's boxers get fights nowadays. So I assume one reason he didn't succeed is that he is a bit too old school for the viewers today which is such a shame really cause his skillset is on other level. His defense reminds me a lot of of young floyd

You know i was reading an article the other day on medium titled" The most misunderstood boxer". One of the key points i take from that article and another espn article called "the lonely success story of rigo" is that Rigo has been underutilized by promoters who did not know the right way to promote him. A good promoter can provide a boxer with opportunities that are better suited to him financially and careerwise.

The other thing i have noticed about rigo & I am making a huge assumption on that as i did not follow his career at all (not his faut, i rarely follow lighter divisions in boxing which is the main reason i joined this thread so i could be updated) is that he doesn't hype the fights and doesn't engage in trash talking. He always seems robotic to me which has not endeared him to the public along with his defensive style and built false narratives about him hurting his image in the process.

I am not saying that he should change his nature but faking a little bit can go a long way in this business & there is no harm in it as your personality helps you become a better draw and increases chances of getting fights as public interest is there which can force the promoter's hand one way or the other.

That is how rest of the world's boxers get fights nowadays. So I assume one reason he didn't succeed is that he is a bit too old school for the viewers today which is such a shame really cause his skillset is on other level. His defense reminds me a lot of of young floyd

You make a fair point with regards to promoting ones self but honestly those are all big misconceptions, Rigo is such a hilarious bloke and incredibly witty; just follow him on social media lol he doesn't speak English which hasn't helped him admittedly but he has been massively let down by a lack of promotion. Bro, look at Eddie Hearn; he makes bums like Kell Brook seem like the biggest thing since sliced bread (and this guy can't even speak English properly lol) and even sold his world title defences involving the likes of Bizier, Gavin and No No Dan on PPV! when you have an elite talent of Rigo's calibre, you're sitting on a gold mind. Having said that, there can be stereotypical judgements with regards to the drawing potential of guys in the lower weight classes but in recent times we've seen a little bit of a boom between 122-135. I give you an example, Loma is a very exciting talent; but many rate him as a P4P best when he has beaten guys who Mikey Garcia destroyed years ago! this is the power of promotion, Loma may well be among the best P4P but he still needs big wins against elite talents, people are often very quick to overlook that though.

The positive is there has been more attention towards Rigo's career in recent times and people have begun to appreciate his greatness, he has ruthlessly pursued the Loma fight and wanted to make it at 126 when Loma was competing there but as always, Rigo is ducked. Now that Loma is 2 weights above him, Rigo was willing to handicap himself in order to get a shot and Top Rank / Loma obliged. So that's a positive because this fight has received a fair amount of attention, not enough but a respectable amount and hopefully he will finally get paid what he deserves.

Quotes from Rigo during the fighter meeting (source Dan Rafael of ESPN):

"I throw fewer punches but I'm more explosive and more accurate. We know we have a lot against us. We're going up two divisions and it's his card.

I like to fight champions. I don't pick and choose my opponents.

I don't want little fights or tomato cans. I want champions. I want fights like this.

Asked about Cuban politics and Castro's death, Rigo declined to discuss the topics. He said he's here in America and that's in the past for him.
Rigo said he doesn't have his gold medals. He said he had to sell them in Cuba to get money to feed his family. He said he got $10,000 for both medals. "

Wow, a guy of his calibre shouldn't have had to do that. I hope he can get those medals back somehow, still remember his stunning performance at athens in 2004 he was just so invincible in every facet, hard to land a glove on.

Quotes from Rigo during the fighter meeting (source Dan Rafael of ESPN):

"I throw fewer punches but I'm more explosive and more accurate. We know we have a lot against us. We're going up two divisions and it's his card.

I like to fight champions. I don't pick and choose my opponents.

I don't want little fights or tomato cans. I want champions. I want fights like this.

Asked about Cuban politics and Castro's death, Rigo declined to discuss the topics. He said he's here in America and that's in the past for him.
Rigo said he doesn't have his gold medals. He said he had to sell them in Cuba to get money to feed his family. He said he got $10,000 for both medals. "

Wow, a guy of his calibre shouldn't have had to do that. I hope he can get those medals back somehow, still remember his stunning performance at athens in 2004 he was just so invincible in every facet, hard to land a glove on.

His punches are really strong and are very deceptive in their power. No wonder everybody avoids him. In the few fights i have seen, he has broken two jaws and busted couple of eye sockets in the first four rounds and what makes it astonishing is that he did this by throwing fewer punches. His punching output is like a heavyweight where the big guys are punch pickers not punch throwers and while this makes him an anomaly. It also doesn't help his image.

You are constantly saying that lomachenko is one of the best P4P but has yet to earn the number one spot yet casual fans already regard him as best P4P fighter. The reason is his attractive style and punching output. He throws those combinations from round 1 and keeps going at the head & body until the other guy gives up. Folks always love & will pay to see a guy who throws lot of punches versus a guy who choses his punches. It is not fair but that is how fans perceive fighters.

It is one of the reason Joshua is popular among fans other than eddie hearn's promotion that he throws a lot of punches. The last champ Wlad had to take so much crap from fans in the US because of his style which was technically astute but made for rather unexciting matches where Wlad would just smother the other guy with jabs. In some fights it would seem the dude was boxing with one hand only as he wouldn't use the right hand at all

His punches are really strong and are very deceptive in their power. No wonder everybody avoids him. In the few fights i have seen, he has broken two jaws and busted couple of eye sockets in the first four rounds and what makes it astonishing is that he did this by throwing fewer punches. His punching output is like a heavyweight where the big guys are punch pickers not punch throwers and while this makes him an anomaly. It also doesn't help his image.

You are constantly saying that lomachenko is one of the best P4P but has yet to earn the number one spot yet casual fans already regard him as best P4P fighter. The reason is his attractive style and punching output. He throws those combinations from round 1 and keeps going at the head & body until the other guy gives up. Folks always love & will pay to see a guy who throws lot of punches versus a guy who choses his punches. It is not fair but that is how fans perceive fighters.

It is one of the reason Joshua is popular among fans other than eddie hearn's promotion that he throws a lot of punches. The last champ Wlad had to take so much crap from fans in the US because of his style which was technically astute but made for rather unexciting matches where Wlad would just smother the other guy with jabs. In some fights it would seem the dude was boxing with one hand only as he wouldn't use the right hand at all

Agree on all those points really, Andre Ward has suffered from a similar issue; but am of the view such fighters can be huge draw's regardless and Floyd proved that, sure they don't need to talk trash like him but he has been built up quiet well beyond that and has an excellent team behind him. Yeah, Loma's style is a lot more eye pleasing but am still surprised how alleged experts have been quick to put him in the top P4P list when he hasn't even claimed a lineal championship, I wasn't one to jump onto the GGG hype train either but at least he was easily the best at 160lb, he suffered mostly due to a lack of depth in the division but was found out when he fought Jacobs. Loma also gets a lot of credit for beating guys who Garcia had handled years ago, yet Loma found himself in the top 10 before him and as we speak is in most publications top 3 or top 5. In the end even this fight, if Loma wins it will be a big victory but not as big had he fought Rigo at 122 or 126. But hopefully he will step up soon, I do admire an individual talent but it has to be reinforced against elite opposition for me before I put them in a P4P list.

Loma is very exciting and throws a lot of punch's but he can remain composed as well and has one of the best percentages when it comes to the number his opponents are able to land on him, I think he along with Rigo are the best according to punch stats which are not the be and end all but give you a great idea. I don't expect him to be his flashy self, he will give Rigo a lot of respect and look to break him down during the stretch.

It's fantastic, they are the most technically sound fighters on earth. Have won the 2nd most Olympic medals in Boxing, the US is no.1 but they also benefit from exceptional investment and resources. So you'll always see them produce the goods in the amateurs, may not see as many in the pro ranks for obvious reasons but as it stands, Rigo is the best of the lot. There's also Ortiz from the heavyweights who is decent although a bit too old, and no one knows how old he really is lol there's also Dorticos, @mani1 may be able to tell you more about him as he loves the cruserweights, Erislandy Lara has been a great champion and Sullivan Barrera is one to watch out for in the light heavyweight division.

A shocking finish to the fight. Loma's work rate was incredible however he was not able to land much or hurt Rigo who's defence was spectacular but he just wasn't active enough due to Loma's evasiveness; at that point honours were even for me but then Rigo fails to come out for the 7th citing that his hand was injured during the 2nd round, hard to believe if am honest. He did a no mass and quit, in a fight of this magnitude it's a disgrace; and it wasn't as if he was being totally outclassed but it seems like Loma dented his ego big time and he was looking for a way out, the fans will never forgive Rigo for this and am sure many will feel robbed. It's even more pathetic that a peasant like myself is criticising a guy of Rigo's calibre, he's a truly great fighter but this is just unacceptable.

A shocking finish to the fight. Loma's work rate was incredible however he was not able to land much or hurt Rigo who's defence was spectacular but he just wasn't active enough due to Loma's evasiveness; at that point honours were even for me but then Rigo fails to come out for the 7th citing that his hand was injured during the 2nd round, hard to believe if am honest. He did a no mass and quit, in a fight of this magnitude it's a disgrace; and it wasn't as if he was being totally outclassed but it seems like Loma dented his ego big time and he was looking for a way out, the fans will never forgive Rigo for this and am sure many will feel robbed. It's even more pathetic that a peasant like myself is criticising a guy of Rigo's calibre, he's a truly great fighter but this is just unacceptable.

Not sure if we saw the same fight, Loma cramped him for room and disabled his lead hand.

Lomachenko is in a league of him own, something Rigo realised half way through the fight! Its unfortunate, cant see anyone challenge Loma right now.

Not sure if we saw the same fight, Loma cramped him for room and disabled his lead hand.

Lomachenko is in a league of him own, something Rigo realised half way through the fight! Its unfortunate, cant see anyone challenge Loma right now.

We probably didn't because Loma was only able to land 16% of his power shots compared to 46% against previous opponents. It was a good performance no doubt from Loma but he barely caused much damage physically which made the no mass even more surprising it was a matter of breaking the 37 year old Rigo's heart, his work rate and size were the biggest differences. It's easier to look great against opponents at 1-2 divisions below him, he's a spectacular talent but it will need to be reinforced against stiffer challenges at his world championship weight or at 135. Hope the Garcia fight gets made.